Incentive
by The Last Deathly Guardian
Summary: A little incentive was all he asked in return. It was up to her whether or not it was worth the price.


**Disclaimer:** I DO NOT own Joker/Clover/Heart no Kuni no Alice.

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 **Incentive**

Alice stared blankly at her cards.

There should be some mistake - the losing hand winking mockingly at her from the table top said otherwise. Across her, the Harlequin masked a poorly concealed grin at her rapidly paling complexion, the sudden anxiety and tenseness of her shoulders, the dredges of fear colouring her light sky blue eyes instead as the turbulent ocean that panics at the signs of an upcoming storm.

Deliberately, Joker placed down his own winning cards, faced up, with a decisive _tap_. It created the desired effect, and he had her full attention trained on him. The smile he bestowed upon her distressed state was, on the surface, sympathetic and showed empathetic understanding for what she was experiencing. It hid the much darker amusement lying underneath that porcelain facade - a mischievous streak intertwined together with ill-intent.

"Oh my, it looks like you lost this time, dear Alice," Joker said, the sweetness of his caring words bellied the tangy coyness layering underneath his voice. Alice did not trust that look he gave her - such an enchanting, heart-stopping smile should not be allowed to be wielded as a weapon by him. It made it all the much harder to stay focused and not let herself lull into a false sense of security. "Hm, what ever shall you do?"

His questions loosened her tongue, which had tied itself to a bout of momentary speechlessness from experiencing her first lost against the Joker. "I-I lost...I'm just...s-sorry. N-Not that I mean to brag but this is sort of hard to take in," she said, pressing her knuckles against her temple. It was such a minute movement but she was shaking. "W-We've never really discussed what happens after I lose. So, what happens now?"

His lips curled, a hollow-sharp smirk stretched over his red lips. "You tell me, little girl." Alice was startled by the mean expression the Jester wore, taken aback by the sudden change in demeanor. "What's a game without winning something worthwhile?"

Alice licked her dry lips, feeling nervous in the presence of this particular Joker. "B-Black?" she guessed. Joker flashed her smirk at her guess, leaning forward across scattered cards, forcing her to back up against her small chair.

A heavy-lidded eye slowly perused her, trailing her figure from the pale column of her neck to her knee high stockings. Involuntarily, her cheeks reddened at his blatant eye-stripping though she refused to give in into the intimidation. She daringly glared at the highly amused expression on his handsome face. "Missed me?" he teased, reaching out with a finger to caress her exposed neck.

She shakily got up from her chair and put as much distanced between herself and the Joker. The Jester frowned, his fingers still hovering over the place she had just sat before he retracted them back with an annoyed sigh.

"What are you doing all the way over there for? Come here," he sneered, sidestepping the table that separated them. Alice backed away further at his advances, turning to run but a hand on her shoulder stopped her from getting far. With little effort, she was spun around and pushed flat against a nearby tree.

Joker openly leered at her. "Caught you,you little minx _."_

Like a deer caught in the headlights, Alice looked at him with wide-eyes, anxious and frightened. _"_ What are you going to do to me?"

He bared his teeth into a smile - if she wasn't feeling so cornered by Joker, she would have took the time to appreciate what nice set of teeth he had. Stunningly white and beautiful - and unfortunately wasted on a foul-mouthed man like him. "You lost, you still remember that? I'm just claiming my prize."

"B-But, I never agreed to this! Ask for something else, anything," she protested, curling her fists over the front of his costume. "I-I still want to change the seasons, so can't I just play another game of cards? I'll definitely win this time and get you those autumn sweets from the Amusement Park instead."

Joker pretended to ponder about it. "You drive a hard bargain, playing on my sweet tooth like that, devious minx. But I'm more interested in tasting those sweets now, if you catch my drift..." He leaned in closer, angling his face in such a way that she knew that what he wanted was a kiss.

Before she could react, Joker stopped mere inches from her face. There was no significant change in his facial expression but somehow she got a sense that this was no longer the Warden in control of the body but the Ringmaster.

Her guess was verified when that trademark eye-crinkled smile of his made an appearance, so refreshing in its boyishness compared to those sinfully dark half-smiles of his counterpart. "I apologize for Joker's forwardness, Alice. Truly, we did't mean to force you into anything that you didn't like."

Alice let out a breathless laugh, soft and relieved. "That's alright. You both just kept on surprising me that's all. So, could you um...could you let me go now?"

Joker hummed, snaking an arm around her thin waist, pulling her hips flushed against his. "Why would I do that?" he murmured, liking the rosy hue the crept up her neck and cheeks. He buried his head in her neck, breathing deeply. Alice swallowed harshly at the action. It felt like such an intimate thing to do. "I'm so much more comfortable in this position. Wouldn't you agree, Alice?"

"J-Joker," she stuttered, breathing in deeply when she felt his tongue raking slowly across her neck, the hums of contentment he made contributed to making her feel more hot and bothered. She felt his hands pressed on either side of her hips, keeping her in place as he had her way with her.

 _Change the seasons,_ a tiny voice repeated incessantly through her marsh-like thoughts. _Get Joker to change the seasons._ The voice pressed when she did not listen, a little too ensnared by the creeping hand sliding up her dress..."J-Joker," she said breathlessly, shifting in vain to stop his advancements. Her thoughts cleared up slightly without the feel of his tongue on her as he raised his head to give her his attention.

It took her monumental effort not to swoon at his alluringly disheveled appearance and to forcibly repress the shiver scaling down the length of her spine at the smoldering look he was giving her. This man was dangerous, she kept reminding herself. Beautiful to look from afar but lethal when you get too close.

Too late for that. Alice had already gotten too close to be safe.

"What is it?" Joker asked silkily, his voice blanketing over her like velvet coating a creamy dark chocolate. She could read the poorly concealed impatience in his posture though his face remained relatively pleasant, it was obvious that he would rather be doing other things instead. The fingers curled against her stomach reminded her of that. Alice shook her head and cleared her throat, attempting to focus.

"I...I want you to change the seasons. I know that I lost the game," she quickly added. "I want to play it again and win. I really need to get to the next season, there are people there who are waiting for me."

"Ah, how many times do to I need to tell you that, in my forest, time stops here," he said, brushing his lips against her left cheek. "You won't be late."

'There's no need to rush,' as he puts it.

Alice leaned back until her head touched the tree bark, away from his touch. Joker stopped his ministrations and observed her. _He doesn't look happy_ , she noted silently. "That said, I would still like to hurry this up. To change the seasons quickly."

Joker pursed his lips, staring at her intently. "You have already used up your quota for a card game for this time period. You would have to wait for the next time change to play again."

"But that would be too long!" she said. "Isn't there a faster way?"

"A request like this must be bargained with something of equal value."

" _Anything_." The word slipped out of her mouth before she could stop herself, too caught up in the thought of being stuck at the circus for a longer period of time than she would have liked. Too late to take back her words now, Alice repeated it with more conviction. "I'll do anything."

"My, you really are desperate to get away from me," Joker said, sighing in such a dejected way that Alice almost felt bad for him. Almost. She did not let go of the fact that his role was webbed with lies, his every action should always be taken with a hint of caution. This was Joker, after all.

"What do you want me to do?" Alice asked, already dreading the response from the Jester; this time the smile on his face completely failed to hide the sinister upward tilt of his lips. Joker was openly mocking her.

" **I want you to kiss me, you damn minx.** " It was the Warden who answered, rough and coarse in his familiarity with her. Alice, though used to the two Jokers switching body, was getting dizzy from the abruptness of the changes today. It was sudden, random and difficult to follow. " **Eyes on me, got that?** " She was pulled forward harshly, stumbling into his chest.

"J-Joker-"

"Hm, yes, _kiss me_ ," the Joker said, breath fanning over those soft pink lips, and Alice quivered at having such a man hovering near her in such close proximity. It made her feel flushed and lightheaded - her thought process were coming in interrupted patterns, slowly shuddering to a gradual halt. "Kiss me as you would to your lover. _Kiss me_ ," his voice hushed, dropping an octave as he pressed himself closer to her body, trapping her further against the tree bark. "And I will change the seasons for you. Wouldn't you like that, _Alice_?"

Alice did not respond, too afraid to even talk in fear of accidentally brushing her lips against his. She had agreed to that she would do anything in return of his help but she felt that this may be taking things too far. What was it like to kiss a lover, she did not really know. And Joker asking her of that seemed cruel even.

Joker clicked his tongue. "Being silent doesn't suit you," he commented, cradling her face in his hand. "Is it a deal?"

Was it worth it?

She made her decision.

Grabbing the back of his head, Alice pulled him down and kissed him.

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